BCM-95 Curcumin has been the subject of 13 published articles of which 8 of them clinical trials. It is known that BCM-95 Curcumin has greater bioavailibility then Turmeric 95 percent extract and, in fact, has 7 to 10 times better absorption than plain curcumin. A recently published clinical trial involving major depressive disorder (MDD) demonstrates that BCM-95 Curcumin had the same effects of the prescription drug fluoxetine but without negative side-effects. Fluoxetine is the generic name for Prozac.

According to Dr. Ajay Goel, Baylor Research Institute and Charles A Sammons Cancer Center, Baylor University Medical Center and study co-author, stated, “It is a novel and surprising application for this natural medicine. People with depression have higher levels of inflammation in the brain. Also, people with depression have lower levels of neurogenesis in the brain, meaning they make fewer new brain cells than people with no history of depression. Curcumin is both a potent anti-inflammatory agent and a powerful stimulator for neurogenesis. A recent animal study was published on BCM-95 Curcumin compared to both fluoxetine and imipramine (an older class of antidepressant medications) and showed excellent results. We are excited to learn the effectiveness of BCM-95 Curcumin in a human study”.

It is known that depression is a worldwide health issue that leads to considerable disability. The administration of drugs is very costly — not to mention the associated adverse side-effects. And, for many individuals, drug therapy doesn’t remove all the symptoms.

This recent trial included 3 arms of 20 volunteers who had been diagnosed with major depressive disorder. These volunteers received either BCM-95 Curcumin (500 mg capsules twice daily); fluoxetine (20 mg daily) or a combination of BCM-95 Curcumin (twice daily) with fluoxetine (once daily). The Hamilton Rating Scale for Depression (HAM-D17) was used to evaluate these volunteers. The Hamilton Scale for Depression evaluates the severity of depression by looking at mood, guilt feelings, suicidal thoughts, sleeplessness, anxiety, agitation or motor retardation, weight loss and other somatic symptoms.

The researchers report that BCM-95 Curcumin was well tolerated and that patients who received both treatments (BCM-95 Curcumin and fluoxetine) received a higher HAM-D17 score. The combined therapy score was 77.8 percent, fluoxetine group scored 66.7 percent and the BCM-95 Curcumin group scored 62.5 percent. According to these researchers, these data were not statistically significant (P= 0.58) from one another, therefore, Curcumin worked as well as the drug fluoxetine according to HAM-D17 score. This is the first human clinical evidence that curcumin (BCM-95 Curcumin) may be used as a therapy for patients with MDD without concurrent suicidal thoughts or other psychotic disorders.